Christmastime
by geekischic
Summary: Since he's been turned, Christmas has always been a lonely time for Mick St. John. That is, until he met a certain blonde reporter named Beth.
1. Chapter 1

_December 25_

Mick St. John sat on the couch in his apartment, staring at the small box covered in wrapping paper that he held in his hand. A small tag attached to the corner read 'Beth'. He'd been debating for the past week whether or not he would give it to her. It had taken most of his creativity to come up with a gift she would appreciate, but now he was nervous as he wondered if she'd like it.

With a sigh, he placed the box on the table and stood up from his seat. He paced the room, hoping that it would push the decision from his mind, but it was no use. That little box wouldn't leave his mind alone. He hadn't felt like this in a long time, as he hadn't had anyone to give a gift to in the past few years. Since he was turned, Christmas had been a lonely day for him, spent locked away in his apartment as he imagined what it'd been like in his past.

A small smile flitted across his lips as he remembered Christmastime with his family as he was growing up. A tiny tree always stood in the corner of the room, covered in lights and too many ornaments to count. He remembered Christmas morning, when he would wake up extra early to see if Santa had come. Every year the room overflowed with presents surrounding the tree, with everything from sweaters made by Grandma to the toy airplanes he asked for every year. He remembered the meal his family had for Christmas dinner. The table was always piled with mountains of food: sweet potatoes, green beans, corn, carrots, and, of course, the customary Christmas turkey. He longed to taste those things once again. The memories hadn't faded yet, but it would only be a matter of time when they did.

Mick was gently shaken out of his reverie as his cell phone rang. His stomach filled with butterflies as he read the caller ID: 'Beth'. He tapped the 'Take Call' button and brought the device to his ear. "Merry Christmas Beth."

He heard a small giggle from the other end of the phone, and a smile filled his lips once again without him even realizing it. "Merry Christmas Mick." He could hear her smile through her voice. "I was just thinking that you might be a little lonely today, so I wanted to invite you over to my place if you wanted some company."

Mick glanced around his apartment. It didn't feel like Christmas here. The walls were bare of any decorations. No wreaths, no tinsel, not even a tree were in the room. He sighed to himself and turned his attention back to the phone. "I'd love to come over, as long as it's not any trouble for you."

"No, no, of course not."

"All right, then I'll see you in a few minutes."

"I'll be waiting." He could hear her smile again before they both hung up their phones. Mick walked over to his closet and retrieved his coat. After putting it on, he made his way to the front door, but that little box caught his attention once again. After looking at it for a few seconds, he sighed in defeat and placed it in his coat pocket before leaving his apartment.


	2. Chapter 2

Mick was disappointed by LA's lack of Christmas spirit as he drove to Beth's place. There were a few stores here and there that had up a few lights or wreaths, but it wasn't enough. There were even a few stores who had the nerve to stay open for Christmas. The air was barely chilly. And, to top it all off, the ground was bare of the snow that had always signaled Christmas for him.

He still remembered what the town was like back in the 30s. Every storefront was barely visible due to all the decorations put on the outside. Snow always blanketed the ground, and the air was always frosty. He remembered making his first snowman out in his front yard. He remembered sledding with his friends down the biggest hill in town. He missed the races down the snowy knoll. He'd been the champion every winter. What a difference 70 years could make.

Mick sighed and shook his head as he parked his car in the parking lot outside of Beth's apartment building. He exited his car and quickly entered the building, hoping that spending the holiday with a friend would replace the Christmas magic he had lost in the past few years.

He took the stairs, as elevators had never quite caught on with him, until he reached Beth's floor. He stood outside her door for a moment, composing himself and gathering what he was going to say. After an encouraging nod to himself, he lifted his hand and gently tapped on the door.

He heard her footsteps from inside the apartment before she opened the door. She greeted him with a warm smile. "Hey Mick. I'm so glad you could come." She stepped to the side to allow him to enter the room before closing the door behind him. "Thanks for inviting me. It wasn't quite feeling like Christmas back at my place."

She chuckled. "Here, let me take your coat." He slipped the garment from his shoulders and handed it to Beth, who quickly hung it in the closet. After closing the door, she headed into the kitchen and called back to Mick, "Would you like something to drink?"

Mick followed her into the room with a sad little smile. Two glasses were on the counter, one filled with a red liquid and the other empty. "I would, but you know I can't have food."

Beth shook her head as she filled the empty glass with wine. "Oh, I know. That's why I stopped at the morgue. Guerillemo said that A positive is your favorite." With a smug little smile, she grasped both glasses, one in each hand, and offered one to Mick.

He smiled widely at her as he accepted the drink. "You never cease to amaze me Beth."

She giggled and took a sip of her drink. "I'll take that as a compliment." Mick nodded and tasted his drink. "Would you like to sit down Mick?"

"Yes, please."

Beth nodded and made her way into the living, beckoning for Mick to follow. A comforting feeling settled over him as he took in the appearance of the room. A Christmas tree stood in the corner, adorned with tiny white lights and colorful ornaments, topped with a bright gold star. Small wreaths and bits of holly and tinsel were modestly placed around the room. His Christmas spirit was beginning to return.

"Christmas time is definitely _here_." Beth grinned as they sat down in two chairs, opposite each other. "Yeah, it's my favorite holiday. There isn't enough Christmas spirit in this town, so I guess I'm trying to make up for it."

Mick nodded in agreement. "I was thinking the same thing on my way over here. I remember when there actually used to be snow on the ground."

Beth's eyebrow raised in interest. "Really? Snow in LA?"

Mick smiled. "Who would've thought?" They laughed together and each took another sip of their drink. "It must've been so different back then."

"Yeah. We used to be able to make snowmen and have sledding races. And, in town, it was unheard of for stores to be open on Christmas morning. And it was almost a law that every building had to have decorations on it." Mick grinned as he remembered his childhood. "I miss it."

Beth watched her finger as it traced the rim of her glass. "It sounds like so much fun. LA was like it is now when I was growing up. I've never even seen snow in person."

Mick glanced up at her with surprise. "Really? You've never seen snow?"

Beth shrugged. "No. I wish I could though."

A small moment of silence settled over the two, and Mick's mind wandered back to the little box in his coat pocket. He knew it was now or never, so he sighed and finally made his decision.

"Beth, I got you a gift. It's back in my coat pocket."

She looked up at him with a small smile. "You didn't have to do that."

Mick shook his head and set down his drink. "It's been a long time since I've had someone to share Christmas with. I miss giving gifts." He stood up from his seat and headed back over to the closet. He took a few deep breaths to compose himself after he retrieved the box from his coat pocket, and then walked back into the living room.

"Merry Christmas Beth." He handed the box to her, trying to hide the bit of nervousness that came over him. She took the gift from his hand and he sat down, watching her carefully remove the red bow and the shiny green wrapping paper. She glanced at him for a second before removing the lid from the white box. When she saw what it contained, her mouth fell open. "Oh my God."


	3. Chapter 3

Her happy little whisper was barely audible, but Mick's sharp hearing was able to catch it. He watched in delight as a wide smile passed over her lips. Her fingers gently lifted the gift from its box: a small silver pendant molded into the shape of an angel, connected to a slim silver chain. The wings were embedded with small clear jewels, and the halo was colored gold.

"Mick." She carefully picked up the necklace and held it up to the light. He looked at her anxiously and explained the gift. "So you can always have a guardian angel with you, no matter where you are."

Her face lit up with a smile as she looked him in the eye. "Mick, it's gorgeous. That's the most thoughtful thing… Can you help me put it on?" He smiled, relieved that she liked the gift, and stood up from his chair once again. Beth stood up as well and gently handed him the necklace. He stood behind her and gently draped it around her neck, securely fastening the clasp. After a few seconds, Beth turned around and smiled a gorgeous smile at him. Her eyes were shining just as bright as the angel around her neck. "Thank you so much Mick."

Beth's favorite crooked little half grin crossed his lips. "I'm glad you like it."

"You know, I have a gift for you as well." She waved her hand in the general direction of her bedroom. She turned away from him and quickly made her way into the room, emerging less than a minute later with a medium sized box covered in silver wrapping paper. She smiled at Mick and handed him the gift. "Merry Christmas Mick."

He grinned and raised an eyebrow as he sat down once again, placing the gift on the table in front of him. She sat next to him as he slowly removed the paper from the box and explained her gift. "I've been to your place a few times in the past few weeks, and I have yet to see a Christmas decoration. I thought I'd help you get started."

He chuckled as he removed the last bit of paper from the box. He opened the lid and peered inside. A small, tabletop Christmas tree sat in the box, with lights and a star already decorating it. He looked up at her with a smile. "Thank you Beth. I can't even remember the last time I decorated my place for Christmas."

She smiled and giggled. "You're welcome."

He closed the lid and placed the box back on the table. He looked around the room with a smile he didn't know was on his lips. When his eyes eventually rested on Beth's, he spoke to her in a grateful voice. "You know, I haven't felt any of the Christmas spirit that is supposed to fill this season in so many years. But today," He sighed happily, "today's made up for all of that. I never thought I'd like the holidays again, but today was perfect."

**Don't worry! That's not the end. I have one more chapter in store for you all :) **


	4. Chapter 4

She smiled. "I'm glad you had a good time."

A playful look filled his eyes as an idea came to mind. "Beth, do you have a favorite Christmas memory?"

She chuckled at him as it came to mind. "Yes. Do you?"

He smiled. "Yeah. One year, it snowed on Christmas Eve. We made a perfect snowman out in the front yard. It had everything: a scarf, a hat, even down to the carrot nose.

When I woke up the next morning, after I opened all my presents, I went outside to play in the snow. When I walked over to the snowman, there were hoof prints all around it, and his carrot nose was gone! I was convinced that Santa had come during the night, and his reindeer had eaten the carrot! My parents played along, and I got to brag all about it to my friends for the next few weeks."

Beth laughed at the thought of it. "That is so cute."

"It's one of my favorite childhood memories." He chuckled at the story, and Beth joined him. She had curled up on the couch next to him, feeling perfectly comfortable with their proximity.

"Now, you said you had a favorite story too. Let's hear it."

Beth grinned and tilted her head to meet his curious eyes. She felt so happy to have him with her for Christmas. "Well, when I was about seven or eight, my teacher in school read us 'The Polar Express'. At the end, when I heard that the little boy had gotten a bell from Santa's sleigh, I knew that I wanted one too. So, on my list to Santa that year, I made sure that I told him I wanted a bell from his sleigh.

Christmas morning came and I opened all my presents, but I didn't get my bell. I was disappointed, but the rest of my presents sort of made up for it. After all, I was a little kid. Well, later in the day, when my mom was cleaning up the pine needles that had fallen on the floor from the tree, she found a little red box buried in the tree skirt. It had my name on it, so she brought me back to the tree and told me that Santa had hidden this gift because it was extra special. When I opened it, there was a little silver bell on a red ribbon, and a note from Santa saying that I'd been such a good girl this year that he wanted me to have this bell from his sleigh. I was so excited. I think I may still actually have that bell somewhere."

Mick watched as her lovely smile lit up her whole face, her eyes wandering back to that Christmas morning.

He sighed with a smile and glanced out the window, admiring how the setting sun had turned the sky shades of pink, yellow, and orange. When he turned his head back to face Beth once again, he found that they had somehow become merely inches apart. He gave her a mischievous grin as he commented, "Well, this is cozy."

She smiled innocently. "What do you mean?"

Matching her playful aura, he leaned in until their noses were touching. "This." His breath tickled her cheeks, and she was momentarily shocked into silence before he broke the intense moment with a chuckle and pulled away. "Wait."

He glanced at her with a curious look. "What is it Beth?"

She leaned in once again as she whispered, "You didn't give me a chance to do this." And, leaving a confused Mick glancing at her, she took his face in her hands and slowly brought her lips to his.

Their eyes both fluttered closed as their lips lightly brushed together. It took only a few seconds for the shock to wear off before Mick opened his lips slightly, welcoming her hesitant kiss. He fought to keep the smile from his lips as he allowed himself to succumb to the kiss they were both so interested in.

But she pulled away soon, much too soon for Mick. He tried to hide the disappointed look in his eyes as he met hers once again. "Satisfied?"

She smirked, chuckling at her own joke as an answer to his question. "Just one more thing…" She reached across the armrest of the couch and opened the drawer of the table next to it. She removed a few green leaves tied together with a red ribbon as she shut the drawer, and a smile once again filled Mick's lips. "How traditional."

Beth turned back to him and waved the plant teasingly. "What would Christmas be without a kiss under the mistletoe?"

Approaching him once again, she held the mistletoe above their heads as their lips met once again. There was no hesitance in this second kiss, as they both parted their lips in welcome of the other's.

When they parted for air, Beth still held the mistletoe above them. Mick smiled the gorgeous smile that melted Beth's heart every time she saw it. "You know Beth, I think I have a new favorite Christmas memory."

She laughed as she stoked his cheek with her fingertips. "Me too Mick, me too."

**-End-**

Hope you all enjoyed my little ficlet here. :) I'm planning a Moonlight New Year's fic now (key word: planning), so I'll try to post when once it's finished. Thanks for reading and reviewing!


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